Neek was supposed to be working on another report. He hadn’t sent one home in almost a month and he knew his leader was probably getting impatient with him but it was near impossible to stay focused on work these days. He could hear his wife and two children playing upstairs, their laughter filling the house so he longed to join them. He eagerly looked at the stairs when he heard their youngest running down, laughing hysterically all the way, his mother soon followed, sweeping him off his feet as she proclaimed “I got you!” She glanced over at Neek “how’s that report coming baby”

He looked down, seeing he hadn’t even finished a paragraph. She could tell by the look on his face he wasn’t getting anything done so she said “why don’t I go to teh store with the kids. I can think up something special for dinner and you could work”

“I dont want you three to leave”

“you need to send a report in, it’s your job”

“Kiss me first then?” she set their youngest down and walked over to him, laughing as she said “it’s only the store” she kissed him then he answered “I love you and our life so much though. I don’t like missing any of it”

“we’ll be back, the sooner you get that completed the sooner we can have some fun together. I’ll have my phone”

“Okay” She yelled up for her older son ” Get ready to leave Baek!”

“Yes mam!” He yelled down so she started looking for her youngest shoes. Once they were all ready the boys hugged their father then followed their mom out. He looked sadly at the door a few moments before making himself finish his report so he could be with them.

“Hey mom, do think tomorrow dad will come out with us tomorrow?” Baek asked.

“I’m sure he will honey. He’s just been busy, but I’m sure as soon as he finishes with work, he’ll go with us anywhere you want.”

Baek’s eyes brightened up. “Do you think he’d go with us to look at the eagle babies we found?”

“I bet he’d really love that.”

Neek decided to write an extra letter before sending everything thing through, asking that he be given time to spend with his family without worrying about work. He enjoyed his work and both Johana and their boys had made it even more enjoyable, but he knew he needed to spend real quality time with them. He didn’t want his children growing up thinking their father didn’t care. He knew if Johana could hear his thoughts she would tell him how unfounded his fears were, but he wanted to make sure they never doubted him.

He impatiently paced by the box, checking it repeatedly until finally, something came back. “Of course you can take a break Neek. You do good work and deserve time to simply be with your family. Just bring them back here soon, we all want to see the boys and Johana again” He felt both relieved and excited as he left his ship and rushed back to the house. First thing he did was call Johana “Hey, you finished that report right? If not get off the phone and do it, we’re fine” She said before he could even speak. “I’m done and I asked for time where I don’t have to worry about studying or reports. I’m free just to be with you and the boys for awhile”

“How long”

“he didn’t specify so I’m sure he doesn’t care”

“That’s amazing, in fact, Baek wants you to come see these eagles we found”

“I’d love to see when you guys get home”

“well, we wont stay out much longer then. Could you clean up the kitchen for me?”

“Of course I can”

“Thank you Neek, we love you, so much”

“You’re welcome, please hurry back” she smiled “we will after I find these spices I need. You’re going to love dinner, at least I hope”

“I’m sure I will. I’ll let you go and get to work on the kitchen”

“Bye Neek”

“Bye Johana”

“Daddies going to see the eagles!?” Baek asked excitedly, causing his mother to giggle “daddies going to see the eagles” She quickly grabbed what she needed and went for the checkout, both her boys seeming happy. She truly loved this life she had with Neek and couldn’t wait to get home to him.

Neek was impatient has he cleaned, wanting his family home and he was excited when he heard their voices as they came up the driveway. He was out the front door and helping her with the groceries before they had even touched the porch. Johana giggled and he leaned down to press a kiss to her lips. “Sorry, I missed you, all of you.”

“Honey, we weren’t gone that long.” She said with a laugh as they stepped inside.

“I know, but I still miss spending real, quality time with you and the boys.”

“You’re going to love the eagles dad.” Baek said. “I spotted the nest the last time mom took us hiking and I could hear them. She wouldn’t let me climb up there though, she said it was too dangerous to go alone.”

“She has a point, but how about tomorrow, I take you up.” He turned his gaze to Johana. “Would that be alright?”

“Of course, you know I trust you.”

Iseul wandered out of the kitchen so Neek said “I’ll play with the boys while you get dinner ready” He looked at Baek “lets go see what Iseul wants to get into”

“Okay” Baek rushed out and he kissed Johana one more time before leaving her to get dinner ready. She happily put what remained of the groceries away then started their dinner, referencing her cellphone for what to do each step of the way. It ended up being an amazing evening and just when Johana told the boys it was time for bed Baek asked “could we make a fort in the living room and all sleep together?” She looked at Neek who smiled “of course we can, you and mom go grab some blankets and I’ll grab some chairs” Iseul ran after Johana and Baek, making Neek lightly chuckle at how adorable their youngest was trying to help tug in a blanket.

They worked together getting it set up so they would be comfortable for the night then Johana ran around switching lights off, happily finding her place among her men when she returned. Johana was half asleep by the time her boys were soundly sleeping so to help her get the rest of the way there Neek gently rubbed her forehead. He would have rubbed her back but Iseul fell asleep with his head on her stomach. “I love you Johana”

“I love you too” her voice was so soft, he knew she was mere moments from finding rest too so he gave her a feather light kiss goodnight. He felt sad when her breathing told him she was out. His family slept so long, even his boys. They took the sleeping habits of humans rather than his species but he went to sleep for the moment, eager for their day tomorrow.

The next morning, Neek slipped silently away from his family, finding himself admiring them for a moment. How beautiful Johana was lying next to their two children. It warmed him and he realized how truly lucky he was to have found Johana. He went quietly into the kitchen and started breakfast, humming to himself as he put on a pot of coffee and then started on the bacon, eggs, and hash browns. It was Baek who woke first and came into the kitchen yawning and rubbing his eyes. “Dad, can I help?” He asked.

“Of course, why don’t you set the table for me.”

“Okay, I’ll pour mine and Iseul’s milk too.”

“Sounds good.” He pulled plates and cups down for Baek and let him take them to the table on his own. He couldn’t help but dwell on the fact that his oldest was growing up so fast, that he was becoming more independent with each passing day. It amazed and frightened him.

When everything was ready he walked back to the fort in the living room. He felt a little guilty now that he realized he hadn’t waited long enough to cook for her to get enough rest but at this point she would have had five hours and he hoped just for today that would be enough. “Johana” he spoke her name with deep affection as he gently rubbed her arm “mm?” He smiled, kissing her ear then whispering into it “breakfast is ready, I know you’re tired, I’m sorry. I was just so excited to spend the day with you guys. If you want to nap later I’ll watch our boys” She smiled and he felt relief she wasn’t mad. Johana didn’t feel ready to get up but he was being so sweet she forced herself, rubbing her eyes and hoping there was coffee so she wouldn’t end up making him feel bad with her exhaustion.

She knew in general he struggled with the fact there was a four hour difference in the amount of sleep they needed and she found that incredibly sweet. So many partners can’t wait for alone time but Neek wasn’t like that at all. He helped her out of the fort and walked ahead of her to the kitchen to pull her chair out. “I’ll grab you some coffee my love”

“Thank you”

“Morning mama” Baek said cheerfully and she smiled “starting to sleep more like your dad?”

“I think I was just excited too for our day with dad”

“He helped set the table and poured the milk. Go wake your brother now alright Baek?”

“Okay dad” Baek ran out of the kitchen and Neek took his place by Johana. She sipped down a few gulps of coffee then began eating “so, eagles first today?” she asked him and he nodded. Soon Iseul was in the kitchen and sitting at his spot. He ate slowly, obviously not ready to get up but he was only three, Johana knew he’d find energy soon. Worst case scenario he could nap with her later. It would give Baek time alone with his dad.

Chapter Two

Once they were finished eating, Johana got Iseul in the bath, while Neek and Baek did the dishes. Baek was next to bathe and they had him watch his baby brother while they got clean. Neek couldn’t help but pull her into him and kiss her lips. She giggled. “Neek, be good.”

“I’m sorry, I just can’t help myself.”

She gave him another kiss. “You’re so sweet, but we can spend some time alone together later. I don’t want to leave the boys alone for too long. Baek is a wonderful older brother, but you know how toddlers can be.”

“I know, I love you.”

“I love you too.”

They quickly cleaned and got out, both of them pulling on clothes for hiking. Johana was glad to find the boys both still watching TV when they came down. “You two ready?” She asked as she switched of the TV.

“yeah” they cheered almost in unison. Once they were outside Neek lifted their youngest onto his shoulders where the little boy giggled happily. Baek took his mothers hand, keeping it until he got excited about the journey and began running all around. They had taken this path many times but it never seemed any less amazing to their children. It seemed they had inherited the curious nature of their fathers people and Johana wondered if they’d want to do what their dad did when they grew up. If that was the case she was glad they moved out here when Freg invited them to build a home. Living out here in the mountains their curious minds could truly be nurtured every day since there was always something new to discover.

It took them an hour just to get to the path but they were in no hurry. Both Neek and Johana knew when they agreed to this it would take at least most of the day. Neek stopped to admire even the branches the eagles had chosen to build the nest on. This mother had obviously taken great care in her nest and what supported it and he prayed it wouldn’t be hostile to them when he took his sons up “Okay, lets let Baek go first since this was his thing, alright Iseul? Can you go to your mom?”

“I brought candy” she said cheerfully and her toddler eagerly went to her. Neek smiled, almost laughing as he lifted Baek “be good Iseul” he told his young son before taking his other son up. Johana fed him candy as she tried to keep her son as silent as possible so he wouldn’t upset the mother. When Neek returned with Baek she adored how happy her son looked “Okay Iseul, I’ll take you now” Iseul went right to his father and Baek sat with Johana “how was it?”

“great, I’m so happy dad came”

“me too”

“do you think he’d take us to space too”

“tomorrow perhaps” He made an adorable excited noise which caused her to laugh and embrace her son “want some candy little man?”

“yes please” Things seemed to go well with Iseul up there but Neek didn’t let him stay quite as long as he had let Baek stay. It was mostly out of concerns the younger child might hurt the babies or the mom on accident since he was still too young to really be trusted with animals. Neek looked at his cellphone “I’m surprised you guys haven’t complained about being hungry” He pulled out a little box and his sons knew what it was instantly. He gave each of them and Johana a ball about the size of gum drop candies and they popped it in their mouths, feeling full instantly. It was something from his home world that he liked to keep on hand. It was delicious and made eating easy when they were out like this.

“Where to now?” He asked as he lifted Iseul back onto his shoulders.

“The river.” Baek answered. “Uncle Freg said there are crawdads and I want to see them. He says they taste really good so maybe we could come back sometime with a net and bucket and you could get some for me dad.”

“All you want buddy, I’ll catch enough to feed all of us.”

“Oh and dad, can we go to space tomorrow? I really want to see the stars and planets and I bet the moon looks even cooler up close.”

Neek chuckled. “Whatever you want.”

“Awesome.”

“Is there anything you want love?” He asked Johana as they continued walking.

“Just to spend time with my sweet husband and two beautiful children.”

“You must want something?”

Johana thought about it. “A date night.”

“Of course, I’ll plan something extra special for you.”

She smiled, her heart warming as they walked along with their children. Johana spent most of her time when they arrived at the river taking pictures of the boys playing with their dad. They all looked so happy and she couldn’t wait to make a scrap book of it for them to keep forever. Scrapbooking hadn’t interested her in the slightest before kids but now she loved it and had a book shelf dedicated to them. It wasn’t incredibly full yet but she knew by the time they were grown she might even need another. That night just the boys slept in their fort. Neek wanted to just be with his wife for a little bit and the boys didn’t seem disappointed at all but they were normally happy children. They had the same easy nature their father had.

“could we soak again? I’m sore from hiking all day”

“If you’re sore, you just take the tub and I’ll pour you some wine. While you relax I can check the ship. If I’m taking you three away from the planet I want to inspect it closely” She kissed his cheek “are you sure? I can help you after we both soak”

“No, you know its better with just one person if you’re doing it because you hurt. You’re always taking care of the boys, you definitely pull more weight than I do when it comes to them so please, soak, enjoy some wine and let me tend to the ship on my own quickly”

“Okay, just make sure Iseul doesn’t sneek out after you. Anything could get him in the dark”

“Not while I’m out there. I promise I will make sure neither of the boys leave the house” Johana ran herself a bath while Neek went to the kitchen to pour her a glass of wine. When he brought it to her she was already covered in water and bubbles “thank you Neek”

“Thank you for being such an amazing wife and for giving me those boys in there”

“I’m incredibly happy” He sat there with her a few moments before going to his boys to see if Baek was still awake “Hey”

“hey dad, didn’t you and mom go to bed?”

“Not quite yet, I need to go check the ship if I’m taking you three up. You boys need to stay inside.”

“I’ll make sure Iseul doesnt try to follow you”

“You’re a good big brother Baek” Neek was as quick as he could possibly be while still making sure he checked absolutely everything. He even double checked the child safety mechanisms he had added to the ship since Iseul was still so young. Once comforted that his family would be safe he returned to Johana, happy to find her reading, still soaking in their bathtub.

He let out a contented sigh once he was sitting behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her against him. “What are you reading?” He asked and brushed a kiss to her shoulder.

“It’s one of the books you had on the ship.” She showed him the cover.

“I am always so amazed by how quickly you picked up my native language. You’re incredible, you know that?”

“You’re pretty amazing yourself.”

“Not as amazing as you.” He kissed her cheek this time, causing her to giggle.

“Are we going to have a war over who’s more amazing?”

“You’ll lose, my love. I have so many wonderful ways to describe you, so many amazing memories that show just how amazing you truly are.” He ran his nose over her ear, causing goosebumps to rise on her skin. “You’re so perfect.”

“I swear you get sweeter and sweeter every day.”

“I just feel so blessed to have this family and I want to make sure you always know that”

“well you do show us. I promise I never feel like we’re not what’s most important to you. I practically have to make you do your work unless its the fun stuff like us going somewhere new”

“well once I do start working again I want you to pick somewhere I haven’t explored yet. That way we have something fun to segway me back into work”

“You didn’t tell me when that is by the way”

“I didn’t ask for a set amount of time and Jeans son didn’t tell me when I had to return to work. I doubt they care how long I take off. I mean, while my people crave knowledge most wouldn’t leave our planet and take all the risks I take living here. I’m sure you’ve noticed, myself and the ones like me who go to collect knowledge are highly respected. I could probably take a year or two off and they wouldn’t bat an eye”

“I still want to tell everyone about aliens once you’re done studying earth so lets not take that long off. Freg and my relatives shouldn’t have to hide who and what they are. Neither should you and our boys. They don’t care now but I worry they might feel bad about how they look later or just the fact they aren’t allowed to look like themselves unless we’re home. I want my children to be free to look like themselves if they want to”

“You shouldn’t worry baby”

“they always look human though, even when we’re home…I don’t know..I just love them so much and I want them to love themselves. It took a lot of convincing to get you to love yourself”

“I’m pretty sure they just like looking like their mother. They’re mommas boys through and through.” He kissed her head then said “I’m thinking at max a few months of us just being happy together. I’ve discovered so much here, so many things even you didn’t know about your planet and others dont seem to know. We’ll have a lot more to reveal than just my kind existing. They live among wolves and demons and somehow don’t know. They are all clever creatures”

“yeah’

Chapter Three

When the water started to cool, they quickly washed and got out, Neek drying both of them, a smile pulling at his lips when she blushed. It was still one of his favorite things. “So, where are you going to take me on our date?” She asked as she pulled on a pair of panties and one of his t-shirts.

“I’m not sure yet, but I wouldn’t tell you anyway, I want it to be a surprise.”

“Meany.”

He chuckled as he lifted her, making her cling tightly to him in surprise. “I’m sorry my love, but you deserve something extraordinary.” He climbed under the covers with her and shifted his shape.

His heart stuttered as she snuggled closer to him and pressed a kiss to his chest. “I already have extraordinary.” She let out a contented little sigh. “Even after all this time, I still can’t get enough of how warm you are. I really love you so whatever you plan, I’ll be happy, even if it’s Taco Bell and movies.”

When Neek woke four hours later he carefully lifted his wife and began carrying her out to the ship. It was like a second home so she could rest there along with the boys while he got them into space. He had a specific destination in mind and in the time it took them to finish resting he could get them within an hour or two of it. Once he had her settled inside he went back in, grabbing clothes for each of them in case they decided to stay gone a long time. Getting everything he thought they would need and their boys on the ship took longer than he expected it but he still had a good amount of time to cut out of the traveling they would have to experience. The first one up was Baek again “huh, you really are starting to sleep more like me aren’t you?”

“I guess, I seem to need to sleep less and less”

“I wonder if Iseul will lose the need to sleep so long as well”

“Maybe, can I help drive dad?”

“do you want to shift to do it? Your mother can manage driving but it’s truly meant for bigger creatures. You’ll have an easier time if you look like yourself” Neek was asking to see if his mothers concerns were valid at all but just as Neek thought Baek shifted and came over without a worry in the world. He guessed what he thought was probably accurate, they just wanted to be the same size as their mother.

“Remember what I said about debris and make sure you tell me if you see something strange on the monitor.”

“I will.”

He patted his son’s head. “You’re a natural you know that? Maybe someday you’ll be able to pilot your own ship.”

“Really?”

“I don’t see why not.”

“I hope so, then I could see everything.”

“I’m going to go check on your mother and brother.”

“Alright dad, I got this, so don’t worry.”

Neek left Baek to pilot, knowing he could trust his oldest to act responsibly. He peeked in on Iseul first, happy to see he was still sleeping peacefully. Next he went to Johana, his entire being instantly warming at the sight of her. He crossed over to her and sat down on the edge of the moment, just wanting to admire her. It was overwhelming sometimes how beautiful she was and he found himself pressing a gentle kiss to her lips, being careful not to wake her. He pulled the covers back up over her since she had kicked them off then went back to Baek.

“where are we going dad?”

“a galaxy I think is particularly beautiful and there are a few things there you and your brother will love seeing. You just need to tell me if you see a dragon when we get there. I don’t see how I’d miss it but we need to be watchful once we get there, both of us”

“a dragon in space dad?”

“mhm”

“it’s dangerous then?”

“incredibly, this type of dragon is known to be very hostile but I know how to deal with them so don’t worry. I just need to know as quickly as possible”

“You always keep us safe out here. I’m not worried. How big is it?”

“you know how huge my ship is?”

“yeah”

“If its a girl it could easily fit ten of my ship in it and if it’s a boy…lets just hope it isnt. If you feel comfortable with the ship on auto I can fetch a book that has pictures of them”

“I can do it dad” Neek smiled proudly at his son before running to fetch one of his books. Johana understood the importance of him knowing where certain books were so even though she was frequently going through his shelves he easily found it, right where it was supposed to be. Neek brought the book to his son and flipped to the chapter on teh dragon he was talking about. “woah, its so pretty. How can it be so pretty and so mean”

“we don’t know, I’m sure something must have happened to them far back to make them that way though. As you see from these notes over here” Neek pointed to the notes as he continued “we think travelers just scare them because as long as you don’t try to hurt it and slowly move the ship away they don’t tend to harm anyone but thats why I’d need to know right away because I wouldn’t want us to accidentally run into it or give it any other cause to believe we want to hurt it”

“are there very many”

“No but that also feeds the theory something happened to them before my species was around because we’ve learned they always have two to four babies at a time. As high on the predatorial chain as they are it makes it odd we don’t see more with that kind of birth rate”

“That’s so sad dad”

“I wish more species were peaceful”

“yeah…I mean, we almost didn’t have momma because of wars right? Freg was the last of his kind before he came to earth”

“yeah” it actually made his heart sink a little to even think of a world without his wife and sons. No Johana would mean no Baek and Iseul as well.

“Well, maybe someday he will, but he was very much in love.” Neek knew if it had been Johana, he would never be able to move on. She was so precious to him that losing her would be the death of him. He commended Freg for living even after his wife’s passing, it took true strength to keep going.

“could you study your own blood or the blood of the other immortal things on earth or something like that to see if you could make mortals immortal? What if I love a human…I wouldn’t want them to die either”

“Thats a good idea. Upon studying the wolves and demons I’ve found they have their own ways of making humans they fall in love with like them so why couldn’t we do it” Neek couldn’t wait to tell his leader about the idea his son had. It was an exciting idea and he was bursting with pride that it had come from his son. When Johana woke up she almost laughed when she saw she was already on the ship that adorable man she thought to herself as she got up. She checked the boys room and upon only seeing her three year old she guessed Baek was up with his father so she went to the front of their ship. “morning boys”

“Morning mom, can we have french toast?”

“sure, if we have stuff for that on here”

“we should” Neek answered so she left to start cooking.

Iseul woke while Johana was cooking so Neek went and got him and took him back to the bridge so he could see the stars. Johana brought their breakfast and drinks out, not minding she had to make a few trips. She loved how engrossed her children were in space, how much like Neek they truly were. Baek was already so curious about everything and Iseul tended to follow everything his older brother did. She couldn’t bring herself to tear them away from what they were doing. “You should have asked me for help love.” Neek said.

“I can manage, besides, you all looked so cute, I couldn’t make you put Iseul down.”

He smiled as he pressed a kiss to her lips. “You really are perfect.”

“Oh hush.” She said, her cheeks tinting pink. They all sat together and ate as the ship moved through space on auto. Johana loved that they could have days like this just surrounded by beautiful twinkling stars.

Neek decided to tell Johana first of their sons idea and she smiled brightly “that would really be amazing”

“Yeah, I imagine we can, it’s all in figuring out how. I mean, I never thought of it so I’m sure we only don’t have a way because nobody had the idea until our son”They talked about different personalities and how they would ever get someone to let them test whatever Neek came up with. Johana felt her siblings significant others might be willing so that they could live forever with their spouses. They had happy relationships, at least as far as she knew so that should be something they’d want. Their journey through space to get where Neek was taking them stayed peacful and soon his entire family was gasping. He had never even brought Johana here so she had a chance to be amazed yet again by space as well.

“Neek…wow” she said almost breathless. This place almost looked like a gorgeous, abstract painting “dad says there are dragons here though so we need to be watchful”

“Oh, really, those huge hostile ones?”

“yes”

“but we’ll really be okay as long as we don’t startle it right?”

“Yes, I’ll keep us safe, don’t worry”

“I know” Just like their sons, she had absolute faith in Neek. He was probably the safest being in the world to be out in space with since he and his people were so vastly intelligent when it came to everything out here. “can we stay here awhile?”

“I brought extra clothes on board just incase you guys would want to”

Neek took over control of the ship while Baek kept Iseul entertained and Johana sat the dishes in the sink. It had taken her awhile to get used to the fact that the ship did most things automatically. She came back and stood next to Neek, watching as they approached the planet. He slowed and pressed a button, enabling the cloaking device that hid him from most living beings. He kept glancing at the radar and altered their course when a dot appeared on it. “A dragon?” Johana asked.

“Yeah, I want to avoid it if I can. We’ll stay on the other side so we won’t risk running into it.”

“Have you ever tried talking to one of them?”

He shook his head. “They tend to be too hostile, I don’t think one would respond if I did.”

“It might be worth a shot one of these days when we don’t have the kids.”

“Maybe someday, but for now I’ll keep away from it. I don’t want to have to hurt it to escape and I definitely don’t want to put any of you at risk.”

With Neek keeping a watchful eye the rest of their journey through space proved peaceful. Neek was eager for some one on one time with his wife so the first thing they did when they got back to earth was ask Freg and the rest of the family in his home to watch over the boys for the day. They were happy to so Neek and Johana finally got their date. He made the day as sweet and romantic as possible. He wanted her to always know how happy she made him. He needed her to always know that there wasn’t anything he could discover that he would ever consider more precious or beautiful than the amazing woman he found on his very first assignment.

Johana took pictures for Neek while he took notes and talked to people about the Shah-e-Cheragh. Since they really didn’t have anything tieing them down they spent very little time in their home. They planned to spend most their lives traveling around until they were ready for children and Johana had been the guide. Once they were done in one place she was finding somewhere else magnificent for him to study and tell his people about for their history books. They didn’t always take pictures but the Shah-e-Cheragh was so beautiful Neek had insisted his people needed pictures. It was the first thing he had seen on earth that he thought his people would actually make themselves.

“did you get a picture of that sweetheart?” Neek asked as he pointed. “Yep”

“good, I can’t wait to see the response once I turn this in”

“I’m sure they’ll love it” he tucked away his notebook, walking over to hug her “I think I have everything I need here. Lets go back to our ship so I can finish writing this up. I want to talk to you about something” she blushed, wondering if it was kids yet. She wasn’t sure what it was but she had had a small case of baby fever lately. She only hadn’t said anything because they had only been together two years and his people seemed to have a weird policy about kids. She didn’t know if it still applied with him living on earth but in any case she felt weird bringing it up so soon in the relationship.

They walked out and made the long journey to where their ship was. Once inside she needed to know what he wanted to talk about “whats up Neek?”

“by my peoples calculations a new planet is going to be born soon and I wondered if you’d like to see it with me. I’ve seen hundreds of planets start their life but it’s not something you’ve experienced so when I realized it would be happening soon I wanted to offer to take you.” she lit up which warmed his heart. It wasn’t what she hoped but still incredibly. “You are the coolest boyfriend Neek” she said as she tightly hugged him. She couldn’t believe she was actually going to get to see a planet form. “I will hurry and finish getting this ready to send home so we can start our journey” he said happily.

Johanna decided to read while he finished his work, but her mind kept drifting between what a world looked like when it was being born, if it was a bunch of swirling bits or if it was simply just suddenly there, and having children of her own. She glanced at Neek, wondering if she should bring it up or just wait for him to ask her. She didn’t want to sound pushy or make him upset. She looked back at her book and felt embarrassed when she realized she had been reading the same paragraph for the last ten minutes. “Alright, I’m finished, just let me send this off.” Neek suddenly said as he got up.

“O…okay, um…”

“Is everything alright?”

“Yes, just wondering if I could pilot once we’re on course.”

“You can help with takeoff if you like. I’d have to help you, you can sit in my lap.”

“Sounds good.” He turned away to send the information and she inwardly groaned at how she couldn’t even utter the word baby. Neek wasn’t even scary, in fact he was the sweetest, most sincere person she knew.

He sent off his work then shifted back to what he really looked like. He was growing to accept the way he really looked and he knew Johana loved him even in his true form. She smiled at him as he lifted her into his arms then settled himself in the pilot seat. He talked through what he was doing and held her hands on certain controls so she could learn the motions to use to get his ship in the air. He was glad she had asked, any excuse for her to be this close he jumped on. She was still absolutely intoxicating to Neek and he felt like the luckiest man in all the galaxies to have her.

She drove easily until Neek could put it in auto pilot and they were able to slip out of their seat. “what should we do with our time? This wont be a quick trip my love” They should talk, she knew they should talk but she still couldn’t. “There’s still one more game I brought on the ship you havent learned to play yet” he smiled “then I’d love to learn” he morphed back into a human. It was simply too hard to play human board and card games with how large he truly was. Neek needed his human hands and arms so he wouldn’t knock everything over.

Neek never had more fun than when he was with Johana. His life had been about exploration, different worlds and species had been his main focus, but now he had Johana and he got to share every moment with her. He couldn’t imagine being out here without her, it saddened him and gave him an empty feeling, something else he had never experienced until her. As usual he learned the game fast and after a few rounds he began to beat Johana. She smiled, making his heart skip a beat. He had learned that some people on Earth reacted badly to losing, but Johana never did. She could be competitive, but she never became angry.

“I’m going to have to buy more games.” Johana said when Neek won again.

“Do as you wish, I would love to learn more.”

“You’re so sweet.”

“You’re sweeter.” She blushed and he gave a pleased smile.

“Oh stop.”

“I can’t help it.”

She laughed and as always with this rampant baby fever she was having, Johana couldn’t help but think how much fun it would be to play these games with their kids. “what’re you thinking about my love?” Neek asked, as observant as ever. She decided to be honest “In that moment I was just thinking what a sweet father you’d be” He looked surprised and then a bigger smile spread on his face. “Was that just a one time thought or have you been thinking about it”

“Does it matter? You said you guys don’t just have kids. You only have them when someone dies”

“I’ll do whatever makes you happy. What’s my leader going to do? Tell me I can’t come home? My family could come see me still and it wouldn’t change our life a bit if he was like that about it though I doubt he’d be that ridiculous anyway. If you’d like a child we will have one and he can feel however he’ll feel about it”

“You mean that? We’ve only been together two years”

“and we’re going to be together forever. I love you, there’s no other for me. Having a kid together is a lifetime commitment yes but my heart already belongs to you forever. If the thought of you leaving my side even skids across my mind for a mere moment it breaks my heart.” He got up so he could move closer to her and pulled Johana into his arms “It would actually make me incredibly happy to hear you say you wanted a child with me” his voice was softer and she blushed again at both the closeness and how amazingly sweet he was being. “I really want kids but I think it’s important to atleast talk to your leader first.”

“Okay but I want you to know we’re having kids no matter what his answer is” He stood up and put her down just before reaching into his mouth. She was confused and about to ask what he was doing but just that quick his mouth was bleeding and he had pulled something out of it “Neek?!” now she was more alarmed than confused. He chuckled “Baby, I’m fine, Have you not wondered how we only have planned children? Ours is far better being an accident has never happened since we created them but I just pulled out your equivalent to birth control.”

“I’ve kissed you hundreds of times and I’ve never felt anything in your mouth”

“Thats why I’m bleeding, I’ll request the proper materials to show you where i just pulled that from.I just want that healing so I didn’t feel like waiting to remove it”

“You could have done that in a better way couldn’t you?”

“Yes but we’re going to be having kids and beyond being impatient to get healing over with I want you to see how serious I am. What my leader says means nothing and I don’t need anybody else to take that out. It wont take very long to heal, I promise”

“You didn’t have to hurt yourself. I feel bad now” He pulled her back into his arms “Don’t feel bad, I’m incredibly happy right now. We’ll go to my planet right after you see the birth of this planet”

“Still, should we get some ice or something?”

“You’re an incredible woman, Johana, thank you for loving me.”

She blushed, her heart dancing. “W…well of course, I’ll always love you.” She touched the side of his face where he had pulled the birth control out. “You’re sure it’s okay?”

“Yes.”

“Let’s at least wipe the blood off.”

He picked her up and carried her to the bathroom where she got a rag and wet it then wiped away the little bit of blood he had on his lips. “Better?” He asked.

“Me?”

“Yeah, are you happy now? I didn’t upset you?”

“I think I was more startled.” She said with a warm smile. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone rip something out of their mouth or rip anything off of anywhere.”

“I won’t have to do it again, so don’t worry.”

“well…while I would have never asked you to do that it’s incredibly sweet you just ripped that out and are so committed to having a baby with me…just know though. If your ruler does get really mad and threatens you for going against how things are done I wont blame you for changing your mind. I want children but I want you to be happy more than I want children. I never want you to look back and regret giving up whatever he might ask you to to do this” He gently rubbed her cheek with his knuckles “It didn’t cross your mind that you might have stirred a desire to have kids in me too? You make me feel all sorts of things my people don’t often feel. Nobody has ever cared, to my knowledge anyway about how we handle having children but I love you and I want to have a family with you. I was looking and waiting for you to say something to indicate you wanted it”

She kissed his cheek and he smiled, taking her face in his hands “you can still kiss me you silly, incredible woman” he pulled her into a gentle kiss then took her into his arms to carry Johana back to the controls of his ship. He let her drive again, simply directing her on where to go. He wanted just to be with her but there were only so many spots in the galaxy auto was safe and with her on board no risk was worth it. He took over when he needed to start slowing the ship and when it came to a stop he said “We need to stay in this room to make sure we don’t miss it. I wish these could be timed more precisely but you can’t rush a creation and they are wildly unpredictable”

“This is so exciting”

“I will take you to these until they’re as common place to you as they are me” she hugged him, unable to help herself and he happily sighed.

Chapter Two

“I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of this place.” Johana said as she stood with her hand pressed against the window.

“Of the ship?”

“Of space and yes the ship too.” She said, giving a small chuckle. “To be able to see this…there are so many astronomers who would give anything for this.”

Neek wrapped his arms around her from behind and she leaned into him. “I’m happy that I get to share it with you, it makes every moment I spend researching more fun than it has ever been.”

“You’re so sweet.” She turned her head and pressed a kiss to his cheek, making his heart skip a beat. “It’s a little chilly, would you shift for me?”

“Of course.” She gave a little sigh when she felt the warmth of his other form envelope her and found herself wanting to snuggle as close as she could get. “Better?”

“Yes, thank you.”

Neek was slowly coming to accept his body thanks to Johana. There were many things she had shown him were useful or were simply things she enjoyed when he shed the human form and went back to what he really was. She had rapidly made him feel completely comfortable in either form and he now wished the rest of his people weren’t so ashamed. The thought just now hit him that he needed to write his people and let them know he was bringing her. When a visitor was coming the entire planet preferred to have warning so they could shift into whatever creature wanted to visit since they were a particularly bad looking species and had so many bad reactions before. He decided to do it tonight after she was resting. Neek wasn’t going to miss seeing Johana’s face when she witnessed the beauty of a planet coming to life.

“Since we have to wait anyways Neek is there anything as far as manners I need to know when it comes to visiting your planet? I don’t want to offend anybody, especially your family or friends”

“It’s the same as on your planet really but one courtesy they really like is advance notice when someone not of their species is coming so they can change forms. I know you would love them all for who they are but don’t ask them to shift back into their true forms. It would be like you going up to a stranger on earth and asking to see them naked.”

“when were you planning on telling them I’m coming?”

“Tonight when you’re resting. I swear you really did inherit your Fregs mind reading abilities and just don’t realize it. I was just thinking about having to write them”

“well, could you add in your warning it’s really okay. What kind of assholes visited your planet before that made everyone so scared”

“My beautiful little warrior of self love it’s okay, I wish they would feel as comfortable with themselves as you’ve made me feel with myself but I can’t just tell them hey feel better and have them feel better about themselves. I will add that you have seen me and are comfortable with our race and hopefully at least some will just be them for your visit. I planned on writing my family personally instead of just letting them hear the announcement so I will make extra sure to explain incredibly well just how comfortable you are with my species”

“You could show them by just being you while we’re there.”

“That’s a wonderful idea Johana.”

She snuggled back up him and watched out the window. The ship warned them that there was an increase in debris and Neek let her go long enough to press a button. “What does that do?”

“It creates a buffer between us and the debris. Small pieces are fine, but bigger pieces could damage the hull.”

“I don’t see anything.”

“It’s not like in the movies you watch. You wouldn’t notice it unless you ran into it.” He wrapped his arms back around her.

“And why the increase in debris?”

“That means it’s getting ready.”

Excitement had her pulse rising and soon even she could tell something amazing was happening. It was beautiful, more beautiful than she could have ever imagined the birth of a planet could be. Johana was absolutely captivated and even gasped a little when it all fully came together “That was so cool Neek”

“It’s amazing”

“do you know if there will be any life there?”

“Only time will tell. If you’d like I can bring you back to check on its progress from time to time”

“Thank you” it wasn’t just a thank you for this but a thank you for everything. These past two years had been the greatest of her life and it was all because of him. He had shown and explained so much to her, had given her experiences Johana didn’t even realize she desperately wanted to experience. “lets get a good rest in before I take you to my planet beautiful” Johana glanced back at the window one last time before they left the room then followed Neek to bed.

“I can’t believe I’m finally going to see your world. I’m so excited, I don’t think I could possibly sleep.”

“Of course you can.” He pulled Johana close to him and he smiled when she settled into him. She rubbed her cheek against his chest and sighed. “See? You’re already halfway there.”

“It’s your fault, you’re so warm and comfy, it’s not fair.”

“Sleep beautiful.” She closed her eyes and he allowed his fingers to sweep through her hair, lulling her into sleep. He gave the top of her head a kiss then slowly slipped out of bed, pulling the blankets up to her chin. He needed to write to his family and leader before he got too comfortable to get up. He wrote his family first, explaining everything and letting them know they had no worries when it came to her accepting them. He sent it off then started one for his leader so he would have time to let everyone know. Once it was sent off, he went back to bed, sliding in next to Johana and having to stop himself from chuckling when she instantly moved closer.

Neek realized he had been the one saying they needed to rest, however he couldn’t help but stay awake awhile and enjoy the closeness with Johana. Neek knew his family was going to be excited to meet her and if his leader didn’t boot him off the planet there wasn’t any way his family was letting them off the planet any time soon. He only had the trip there to be alone with her if things went well and he hoped they did. He wasn’t going to be told he couldn’t give Johana children but he didn’t want to have to leave his planet and never look back if worst case scenario came up. When he did finally fall asleep his mind was on happy thoughts of little moments he imagined he might have with Johana if they had little ones running around his ship and their home on earth.

Johana enjoyed the trip to his home world, her eyes riveted to each new moon or planet they passed from the moment she woke. She knew that she would never be able to see all of it even if she tried. “We’re close.” Neek said as he took his place at the head of the ship and took it off autopilot.

“I’m kind of nervous.” Johana replied as she moved to stand next to him.

“Don’t be my love, no one here will hurt you.”

“Hurt isn’t what I’m worried about.”

He pulled her onto his lap and kissed her cheek. “You are so perfect, Johana, and if anyone makes you feel less than perfect I won’t hesitate to knock them out.”

“What if they kick you off the planet because of me?”

“It will hurt, but as long as I have you, I’ll be happy.”

“I can’t help but worry about it, no matter how much you tell me it’ll be fine”

“He’s never been an unreasonable man. I just don’t know how he’s going to react. There is no record of anybody desiring to have children. For generations my people have only tried when one died and as soon as a pregnancy was announced nobody peeped a word about children until another death occurred. For all I know he could take it perfectly well and just tell everyone to do what they want. If I knew of any instance our leader was fought on something I’d have a better idea but we’ve been set in our ways since his father before him”

“really? Nobody has ever been unhappy about any rule?”

“Truly we don’t have many. We are all born with a deep, almost all consuming need for knowledge. We live our lives to learn and when you only care about learning there isn’t much to get worked up over”

Johana rested her head against his chest as the ship entered his home world’s atmosphere. He guided it down, slowing as they broke through clouds and she sat up, wanting to see everything. He slowed even more, letting her enjoy the view from above and smiling at the look of awe on her face. “Wow, it’s beautiful.”

“You really like it?”

“Of course I do, look at those buildings.”

“I told you, my people are a bit extravagant.”

“I can’t wait to see everything. I’m going to have to take pictures for my dad, he’s going to love this.”

As they drew near the ground Johana smiled, happy to see so many people there and so many looking as they really did. She was glad they felt comfortable being themselves in front of her. “That’s my family you know” Neek informed her and she looked at him “everyone here?”

“Yep, I guess they wanted to greet you. This is always where I land when I come home which is how they knew where to be” Neek took her hand once they were on the ground and proudly walked out with her. “Hello!” a woman said excitedly “Hi, I’m Johana”

“Oh I know, my son has told me so much about you. You are such a beautiful human, inside and out. You know you have made Neek the first one of our kind to ever be with someone outside of our species”

“he told me but thats really stupid. Neek has a really big heart as I’m sure a lot of you do.”

“well now that you’ve seen me as a human I’ll be myself. I just wanted you to recognize me if I can ever drag his father to earth” she shifted and Johana felt happy that had been the only reason she wasn’t herself when she got off the aircraft. Johana spent a good hour meeting everyone that came out to greet them but she happily stood there talking. She was eager to see Neeks home but it felt incredible they were all so interested in her and seemingly happy about hers and Neeks relationship. “Neek, are you taking her with you to talk to our leader? If not she can hangout with us”

“would you like to spend time with my family while I talk to him? He might feel better talking about the subject just between us. He might feel put on the spot anyway if you’re standing with me.”

“Your family seems wonderful so if you think it might go better if you talk to him by yourself I’d love to hangout with them” he kissed her head “then I will go ahead and go. Please show her around a bit, I know she wants to see everything” he asked his parents and they nodded. Johana followed his family away while Neek went off in a different direction. When Neek arrived at their leaders home he was seen right away “welcome back Neek, you have been amazing at collecting information for us. I will admit I was a bit worried about Johana hindering your research but you’ve turned out to be one of our best studiers”

“she helps me and gives me ideas on what to study next”

“why is she not with you? I wanted to meet her”

“I wanted to talk to you about something that might upset you so I had her go off with my family

“what is it Neek?”

“I took out my birth control because we want a baby. I know nobody has died and this isn’t the way we do things but sir it’s not like I even live here and even if I did it’s not as if our world is jam packed with beings. There is plenty of room for babies. I hope you understand and if you don’t understand don’t feel like me breaking rules and taking out my birth control is her fault. She didn’t ask me to do it and on top of that I just wanted to do what I wanted to do. She insisted I come home and talk to you before we started trying” His leader paused a few moments before saying “You are right Neek, you know it wasn’t I who made that rule anyway. That has been in place for many generations. You have my blessing and I intend to change that rule”

“Just like that?”

“we are too logical sometimes Neek. I’m going to step down soon so maybe this is a good way to end my leadership before I pass things on to my son which is another thing that is long over due” Neek smiled “I am happy you are accepting of this”

“I could tell you were ready to fight me over it”

“I love her and will give her anything that makes her happy. She wants children, even if I didn’t want children rules be damned she’d have them. I know how lucky I am to have her and I wont lose her”

“Now that thats over with may I meet her?”

“sure”

“Bring her here for dinner, your family is invited aswell” Neek walked out to be respectful but the second he was out the doors he ran all the way home, excited to tell Johana the good news.

The moment he saw her, he couldn’t keep himself from scooping her up and her happy laughter made him feel even lighter. “That was fast.” Johana said as he hugged her to him.

“He gave us his blessing.”

“Really?” Her eyes shone with her joy.

“Yes, we can get started whenever you wish.” She blushed and he pressed a kiss to her lips, too happy to worry about embarrassment.

“Blessing for what?” His mother asked.

“To have children. He’s even having the law abolished so anyone can have children when they wish.” He lowered Johana to her feet. “I hope that pleases you.”

“Of course it does dear.”

“If you all don’t mind I want to take Johana to meet my best friend and then tonight we are having dinner with Jean. He wants to meet her and he says you are welcome as well”

“we will see you two at dinner then”

“I plan for us to stay awhile so you can get to know her so don’t worry” his mom laughed “I know, I also know you’re eager to show her off to everyone. Go on, I’ll see you later” Neek lifted Johana into his arms again and took her to Oluwa’s home. He also greeted her looking like himself “Neek! Johana! Come in” He seemed eager and excited but he hadn’t seen his best friend in two years so him seeming to burst from them seams with joy was understandable. About an hour into catching up Oluwa said “well damn Neek, who knew you grow up to change so much and have so many firsts and on top of thatg actually change something around here. Nothing changes or at least hasn’t in a long time” he chuckled again “you better bring your children back to meet me”

“I will”

“any more firsts you plan on adding to the list or do you have your sights on any other rules you want to change?” he asked teasingly and Neek answered “Not really but give it time” Johana laughed with them and the three continued talking until they needed to leave for dinner with Jean. “I imagine tomorrow I’ll take her around to get pictures of my home for her father. Do you want to join us Oluwa?”

“I’d be delighted, she’s fun, I see why she caught your eye” Neek smiled proudly then left with Johana in his arms. She kissed his cheek and said “you’re adorable”

“and you’re amazing Johana, perfect and absolutely amazing”

“Do you think your parents will really come to earth eventually?”

“Oh yes, especially since Freg has found such a good area where we dont have to worry so much about humans”

“Maybe after you’ve completed your study of the earth we can try to open my species mind to the fact there really is more out there. If we wait until you’re done learning about the earth then we can just get in your ship and fly away before anybody has time to hurt you if that goes really badly”

“I’m good with that. I can simply bring you back here until I’m assigned a new place to study” The two stayed until everyone Neek was close to had gotten some time with Johana and Johana had gotten plenty of pictures for her father. They had been trying every night on Krawnum but four months later and she still wasn’t with child. Neek knew it could take time but he was impatient, probably for the first time in his life. Now that they were returning to earth and would be alone all they wanted again he planned to start trying a lot harder to impregnate her.